Thursday, February 14, 2013

Just over a year went by since my last entry, crazy! The kid has grown and another is on the way. Life moves fast now. With limited time, I found that Twitter was the best medium to share my latest brewing adventures. Posting the below time lapse video of my last brew day really brought me back here. This brew was the 16th batch on the new system which has now yielded 195 gallons. On my old 5 gallon system, the same volume would have taken 39 batches. Since I started brewing with the B3 2050, I have been really enjoying splitting a batch in increments of 5 gallons to test out different yeast strains. In the future, I want to also experiment with varying fermentation temperature schedules.

The video below was taken using a time lapse camera over the course of a casual homebrew day. The camera took one shot every 2 seconds and compiled the images at a rate of 30 frames per second. I edited out some of the longer waits (all grain, all day) to show more of the busy-body action of the day. For a better resolution video, you can go here Chillindamos Homebrew Time Lapse.

Hoptastic IPA

Imperial IPA

BJCP:
14C

Date: 02/10/2013

Type: All Grain

Brewer: Sean

Batch Size: 15.50 gal

Asst Brewer:

Boil Time: 90 min

Equipment: 15G B3 2050

Est Original
Gravity: 1.073 SG

Measured Original Gravity:
1.072 SG

Est Final Gravity:
1.012 SG

Measured Final Gravity:
1.012 SG

Estimated Alcohol by Vol:
8.2 %

Actual Alcohol by Vol: 7.9 %

IBUs (Tinseth’s):
110.7 IBUs

Est Color:
9.6 SRM

Total Hop Weight: 21.50 oz

Calories: 243.1 kcal/12oz

Description:

Ingredients

Amt

Name

Type

#

%/IBU

38.20 gal

SD Alvarado

Water

1

-

6.00 g

Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Mash 60.0 mins)

Water Agent

2

-

35 lbs

Brewers Malt 2-Row (Briess) (1.8 SRM)

Grain

3

81.4 %

3 lbs 8.0 oz

Munich (Dingemans) (5.5 SRM)

Grain

4

8.1 %

2 lbs

Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM)

Grain

5

4.7 %

2 lbs

Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM)

Grain

6

4.7 %

8.0 oz

Wheat - White Malt (Briess) (2.3 SRM)

Grain

7

1.2 %

1.50 oz

Homegrown Chinook [13.00 %] - First Wort 90.0 min

Hop

8

27.9 IBUs

2.00 oz

Homegrown Chinook [13.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min

Hop

9

33.8 IBUs

1.00 oz

Homegrown Columbus [14.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min

Hop

10

18.2 IBUs

6.00 g

Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Boil 60.0 mins)

Water Agent

11

-

2.00 oz

Homegrown Columbus [14.00 %] - Boil 20.0 min

Hop

12

12.2 IBUs

1.00 oz

Homegrown Cascade [5.50 %] - Boil 20.0 min

Hop

13

2.4 IBUs

1.00 oz

Simcoe [13.00 %] - Boil 20.0 min

Hop

14

5.7 IBUs

1.00 oz

Homegrown Cascade [5.50 %] - Boil 5.0 min

Hop

15

1.2 IBUs

1.00 oz

Simcoe [13.00 %] - Boil 5.0 min

Hop

16

2.8 IBUs

1.00 oz

Homegrown Cascade 20 min Whirlpool [5.50 %] - Boil 1.0 min

Hop

17

1.3 IBUs

1.00 oz

Homegrown Centennial 20 min Whirlpool [10.00 %] - Boil 1.0 min

Hop

18

2.2 IBUs

1.00 oz

Homegrown Columbus 20 min Whirlpool [14.00 %] - Boil 1.0 min

Hop

19

3.0 IBUs

1.40 oz

Simcoe Rocket 175°F [13.00 %] - Aroma Steep 0.0 min

Hop

20

0.0 IBUs

0.45 oz

Homegrown Centennial Rocket 175°F [10.00 %] - Aroma Steep 0.0 min

Hop

21

0.0 IBUs

0.15 oz

Homegrown Cascade Rocket 175°F [5.50 %] - Aroma Steep 0.0 min

Hop

22

0.0 IBUs

1.0 pkg

California Ale (White Labs #WLP001) [35.49 ml]

Yeast

23

-

1.0 pkg

Dry English Ale (White Labs #WLP007) [35.49 ml]

Yeast

24

-

1.0 pkg

Pacific Ale (White Labs #WLP041) [35.49 ml]

Yeast

25

-

3.00 oz

Homegrown Cascade [5.50 %] - Dry Hop 10.0 Days

Hop

26

0.0 IBUs

3.00 oz

Homegrown Centennial [10.00 %] - Dry Hop 10.0 Days

Hop

27

0.0 IBUs

Mash Steps

Name

Description

Step Temperature

Step Time

Infusion

Add 52.47 qt of water at 161.3 F

148.0 F

70 min

Mash Step

Heat to 168.0 F over 50 min

168.0 F

5 min

Mash Type: SMART 148 and Mash Out

Total Grain Weight:
43 lbs

Sparge Temperature:
168.0 F

Pre-boil Volume:
18.95 gal

Days in Primary: 7.00

Primary Temperature:
68.0 F

Days in Secondary:
10.00

Secondary Temperature:
66.0 F

Days in Tertiary: 7.00

Tertiary Temperature:
65.0 F

Carbonation Type:
Keg

Volumes of CO2: 2.4

Pressure/Weight:
13.72 PSI

Carbonation Used:
Keg with 13.72 PSI

Keg/Bottling Temperature:
45.0 F

Storage Temperature:
42.0 F

Notes: B3 2050 Batch #16Divded
wort into 3 five gallon carboys pitched with 1 vial each of the 3 yeast
strains. No starters. One minute of oxygen via diffusion stone in
each carboy. Also, 1 vial of WLN4000 Clarity-Ferm in each carboy (first
time use).

Thursday, February 9, 2012

The new system has arrived and homebrewing has elevated to a new level. The MoreBeer 2050 BrewSculpture was ready ahead of time and it was difficult to wait through the holidays for the opportunity to fire it up.

The first of many homebrews, B3 2050 BrewSculpture.

As with any upgrade or new location, I anticipated a rough start. I wasn't even sure if the BrewSculpture would fit through the doorway since specs slightly exceeded the width of our garage door. I decided that I would test and scrub everything on one day before committing to a brew day. Luckily, it fit through the door and was moderately manageable to move the stand to my existing brewing location. With the kettles and everything loaded, the weight is insane. Just the stand, moving around is quite easy.
After a thorough scrub and testing of all systems (pumps, float switches, temp gauges, gas lines, digital burner, probes), it was a GO for Inaugural Pale Ale. Here's the homebrew recipe:Chillindamos Homebrew Recipe

Inaugural Pale Ale

American Pale Ale

BJCP:
10A

Date: 01/14/2012

Type: All Grain

Brewer: Sean

Batch Size: 10.00 gal

Asst Brewer:

Boil Time: 90 min

Equipment: B3 2050

Est Original
Gravity: 1.057 SG

Measured Original Gravity:
1.057 SG

Est Final Gravity:
1.012 SG

Measured Final Gravity:
1.007 SG

Estimated Alcohol by Vol:
6.0 %

Actual Alcohol by Vol: 6.6 %

IBUs (Tinseth’s):
42.9 IBUs

Est Color:
5.9 SRM

Total Hop Weight: 8.00 oz

Calories: 187.8 kcal/12oz

Description:

Ingredients

Amt

Name

Type

#

%/IBU

17.30 gal

SD/RO 70/30

Water

1

-

1.00 tbsp

pH 5.2 Stabilizer (Mash 60.0 mins)

Water Agent

2

-

17 lbs

Rahr 2 Row Malt (2.0 SRM)

Grain

3

81.0 %

2 lbs

Munich Malt (9.0 SRM)

Grain

4

9.5 %

1 lbs

Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM)

Grain

5

4.8 %

1 lbs

White Wheat Malt (2.4 SRM)

Grain

6

4.8 %

1.00 oz

Nugget [13.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min

Hop

7

22.1 IBUs

1.00 Items

Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 mins)

Fining

8

-

0.50 tsp

Irish Moss (Boil 10.0 mins)

Fining

9

-

2.00 oz

Centennial [10.00 %] - Boil 10.0 min

Hop

10

12.3 IBUs

1.00 oz

Cascade [6.60 %] - Boil 10.0 min

Hop

11

4.1 IBUs

1.00 Items

Servomyces (Boil 10.0 mins)

Other

12

-

2.00 oz

Cascade [6.60 %] - Boil 5.0 min

Hop

13

4.5 IBUs

2.00 oz

Cascade [6.60 %] - Boil 0.0 min

Hop

14

0.0 IBUs

2.0 pkg

California Ale (White Labs #WLP001) [35.49 ml]

Yeast

15

-

Mash Steps

Name

Description

Step Temperature

Step Time

Mash In

Add 27.30 qt of water at 165.3 F

152.0 F

60 min

Mash Out

Heat to 162.0 F over 10 min

162.0 F

0 min

Mash Type: Single Infusion, Light Body, No Mash Out

Total Grain Weight:
21 lbs

Sparge Temperature:
168.0 F

Pre-boil Volume:
11.15 gal

Days in Primary: 4.00

Primary Temperature:
66.0 F

Days in Secondary:
10.00

Secondary Temperature:
60.0 F

Days in Tertiary: 7.00

Tertiary Temperature:
65.0 F

Carbonation Type:
Keg

Volumes of CO2: 2.3

Pressure/Weight:
12.54 PSI

Carbonation Used:
Keg with 12.54 PSI

Keg/Bottling Temperature:
45.0 F

Storage Temperature:
45.0 F

Notes: Pale Ale, such an under appreciated style these days. Especially in San Diego, where I like to tell people that IPA flows out of drinking fountains, pale ale just sounds ordinary. As one of my favorite beers styles, I haven't brewed a pale ale in such a long time. I wanted to brew a great first beer on the new MoreBeer B2050 BrewSculpture and pale ale was very appropriate. Suprisingly, the brew day went very smooth. Over a decade of homebrewing enabled a fairly easy transition. Hops at 0 minutes were used in a Hop Rocket. Nugget and part of the Cascade hops were homegrown by Travis. Centennial from my farm.

There were a few minor hiccups during the first brew but nothing that hindered the bulk of the process. I was having way too much fun to really care about the details. The second batch had to wait a few weeks but by then all the kinks were worked out.

Getting ready to heat up the mash liquor.

California Common was next on the homebrew list. An observer on this day would have probably noted that it would have appeared that I had been using this system for years. Everything went extremely well. I don't even think we spilled any grain during the tippy clean-up. Clean-up is a bit more involved than before but luckily Kara helped out both brews. After this batch, I'm ready to ramp up the production if needed for sheer quantity and experimentation.

Chillindamos Homebrew Recipe

Start Your Steam Engines

California Common Beer

BJCP:
7B

Date: 02/02/2012

Type: All Grain

Brewer: Sean

Batch Size: 10.00 gal

Asst Brewer:

Boil Time: 90 min

Equipment: B3 2050

Est Original
Gravity: 1.066 SG

Measured Original Gravity:
1.065 SG

Est Final Gravity:
1.021 SG

Measured Final Gravity:
1.014 SG

Estimated Alcohol by Vol:
6.0 %

Actual Alcohol by Vol: 6.7 %

IBUs (Tinseth’s):
32.6 IBUs

Est Color:
12.0 SRM

Total Hop Weight: 6.00 oz

Calories: 219.2 kcal/12oz

Description:

Ingredients

Amt

Name

Type

#

%/IBU

23.50 gal

SD/RO 70/30

Water

1

-

0.50 tbsp

pH 5.2 Stabilizer (Mash 60.0 mins)

Water Agent

2

-

17 lbs 16.0 oz

Rahr Malting 2-Row (1.8 SRM)

Grain

3

71.6 %

4 lbs

Belgian Munich (9.0 SRM)

Grain

4

15.9 %

1 lbs

British Crystal Malt (70.0 SRM)

Grain

5

4.0 %

1 lbs

Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM)

Grain

6

4.0 %

1 lbs

Victory Malt (25.0 SRM)

Grain

7

4.0 %

2.1 oz

Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM)

Grain

8

0.5 %

1.50 oz

Northern Brewer [7.50 %] - Boil 60.0 min

Hop

9

18.0 IBUs

1.00 tsp

Irish Moss (Boil 15.0 mins)

Fining

10

-

1.00 Items

Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 mins)

Fining

11

-

2.25 oz

Northern Brewer [7.50 %] - Boil 15.0 min

Hop

12

13.4 IBUs

1.00 Items

Servomyces (Boil 10.0 mins)

Other

13

-

2.25 oz

Northern Brewer [7.50 %] - Boil 1.0 min

Hop

14

1.2 IBUs

1.0 pkg

San Francisco Lager (White Labs #WLP810) [35.49 ml]

Yeast

15

-

Mash Steps

Name

Description

Step Temperature

Step Time

Infusion

Add 43.47 qt of water at 167.7 F

154.0 F

60 min

Mash Step

Heat to 168.0 F over 20 min

168.0 F

5 min

Mash Type: SMART 154 and Mash Out

Total Grain Weight:
25 lbs 2.1 oz

Sparge Temperature:
168.0 F

Pre-boil Volume:
12.56 gal

Days in Primary: 14.00

Primary Temperature:
60.0 F

Days in Secondary:
10.00

Secondary Temperature:
65.0 F

Days in Tertiary: 7.00

Tertiary Temperature:
65.0 F

Carbonation Type:
Keg

Volumes of CO2: 2.5

Pressure/Weight:
12.27 PSI

Carbonation Used:
Keg with 12.27 PSI

Keg/Bottling Temperature:
40.0 F

Storage Temperature:
40.0 F

Notes: This time of year, from a combination of old plaster walls and wood floors, the house fermentation area maintains a consistent 58-60°F. Too cold for ales and too warm for lagers but close enough for a hybrid yeast strain such as White Labs WLP810 San Francisco Lager to thrive. Recipe formulation started with Jamil's recipe shared during his Brewing Network podcast on brewing California Common.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Time for some Radical Brewing! When Bryan came to visit us from Oahu I asked him to bring an
interesting and wild Hawaiian ingredient. Noni juice is what arrived.
The noni fruit is loaded with carbs, dietary fiber, and a host of other
micronutrients and phytochemicals. The Puna Noni juice label describes the
product as a nutrient supplement with a suggested daily dose of about
1oz (should be about an ounce per serving of beer in the final product). Searching the web,
you can find several noni homeopathic applications none of which have
been thoroughly investigated. From urinary tract infections to cancer inhibitors, noni juice seems to have a number of health benefits. This beer might be the cure
you're looking for! Apparently, the juice is already fermented prior to bottling so there might already be some interesting critters in the juice. This would also explain why I didn't see a jump in OG after adding the juice. For better or worse, I applied the juice after the boil so as not to disrupt the funkiness already present in this concoction.

Puna Noni Juice

This has got to be radical brewing, right Randy Mosher? This fruit develops a strong odor as it ripens that give it nicknames like "cheese fruit" and "vomit fruit". You'd never think that this species is in the coffee family! According to the noni Wikipedia article, people will only eat this fruit during times of famine. Well, let's see how it does in a homebrew. Should be an interesting experiment and I have several glass carboys that are screaming for long-term projects.

Noni Fruit, Morinda citrifolia

Chillindamos Homebrew Recipe

Puna Noni Sour

Specialty Beer

BJCP:
23A

Date: 12/20/2011

Type: All Grain

Brewer: Sean

Batch Size: 5.00 gal

Asst Brewer:

Boil Time: 90 min

Equipment: Chillindamos Brewhaus

Est Original
Gravity: 1.061 SG

Measured Original Gravity:
1.059 SG

Est Final Gravity:
1.017 SG

Measured Final Gravity:
1.010 SG

Estimated Alcohol by Vol:
5.9 %

Actual Alcohol by Vol: 6.4 %

IBUs (Tinseth’s):
38.1 IBUs

Est Color:
14.3 SRM

Total Hop Weight: 3.80 oz

Calories: 196.2 kcal/12oz

Description: The noni juice is dark brown and very aromatic. The flavor and aroma are hard to describe since I haven't had anything like this before. Definitely funky! Should put most recipes found in "Radical Brewing" in the tame category.
I'll categorize this brew in BJCP Category 23 - Specialty Brew for its unusual and exotic fermented fruit ingredient and no definitive baseline style.

Ingredients

Amt

Name

Type

#

%/IBU

8.40 gal

SD/RO 50/50

Water

1

-

0.50 tbsp

pH 5.2 Stabilizer (Mash 90.0 mins)

Water Agent

2

-

8 lbs

Pilsner (2 Row) Ger (2.0 SRM)

Grain

3

65.6 %

4 lbs

Munich Malt (9.0 SRM)

Grain

4

32.8 %

3.2 oz

Carafa II (412.0 SRM)

Grain

5

1.6 %

1.60 oz

Tettnang [4.10 %] - Boil 60.0 min

Hop

6

24.5 IBUs

1.00 Items

Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 mins)

Fining

7

-

1.20 oz

Saaz [3.80 %] - Boil 15.0 min

Hop

8

8.4 IBUs

1.00 oz

Saaz [3.80 %] - Boil 10.0 min

Hop

9

5.1 IBUs

1.0 pkg

Belgian Saison I Ale (White Labs #WLP565) [35.49 ml]

Yeast

10

-

3.00 qt

Puna Noni Juice (Primary 0.0 mins)

Flavor

11

-

2.0 pkg

Belgian Sour Mix 1 (White Labs #WLP655) [50.28 ml] [Add to Secondary]

Yeast

12

-

Mash Steps

Name

Description

Step Temperature

Step Time

Mash In

Add 13.42 qt of water at 173.8 F

152.0 F

90 min

Mash Type: Single Infusion, Medium Body, No Mash Out

Total Grain Weight:
12 lbs 3.2 oz

Sparge Temperature:
168.0 F

Pre-boil Volume:
5.95 gal

Days in Primary: 14.00

Primary Temperature:
65.0 F

Days in Secondary:
365.00

Secondary Temperature:
60.0 F

Days in Tertiary: 7.00

Tertiary Temperature:
65.0 F

Carbonation Type:
Keg

Volumes of CO2: 2.3

Pressure/Weight:
12.54 PSI

Carbonation Used:
Keg with 12.54 PSI

Keg/Bottling Temperature:
45.0 F

Storage Temperature:
60.0 F

Notes: Added noni juice directly to the primary just before pitching WLP565. Saison I yeast was choosen for its known ability as an underachiever leaving food behind for the sour blend to do its work. 60 seconds of oxygen via diffusion stone also applied prior to pitching. No yeast starter used, single vial only. Started ferment at 65°F and insulated well to allow free-rise. I will not ramp up the temperature like most saison fermentation profiles. Instead, I will let 565 do what it can before racking to secondary and pitching two vials of WLP655 Belgian Sour Mix I. Then, it will sit for a year.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

This is my first writings about working with Hawaiian passion fruit
but this is the third brew working with the fruit. I also made a
semi-sweet mead with lilikoi juice on national mead day this past
August. The lilikoi fruit is sourced from a great friend's backyard on
Oahu. Lilikoi is the Hawaiian word for passion fruit.
He crushes and strains the juice. The juice looks like an intense
orange juice. The aroma is amazing and the flavor is very tart,
citrusy, and tropical. Huge props to Bryan who readily processes and
ships this across the pond.

This
past summer, I brewed a similar batch to this one as well as a Belgian
Wit. Personally, I think it does very well in an American Wheat but
others at my homebrew club liked the wit better. While the wit was more
tart, I feel the fruit flavor and aromas were in better marriage with
the malt and yeast profile in the American Wheat I brewed. Part of me
also thinks that beer fans are also more partial to any Belgian style
over a style like American Wheat which can have a bad reputation as a
"blonde ale".

I'm getting better with BeerSmith 2. Like with most software, it has had its learning curve. I still see calculated values that don't match my brew day. Since the Chillindamos Brewhaus will experience a major upgrade in the future, I will invest the time at a later date to match the software with my brewing process. I'm wondering if anyone else uses the software with MoreBeer!s SMART system? Here's a description of the mashing process I'm adopting:

SMART is a method of maintaining or
raising the temperature of your Mash. SMART
stands for Step Mash Adjusted Recirculation
Temperature. While the acronym is a bit of a
stretch, it is a smart way of adjusting your Mash
temperature without the concerns of scorching
that can be associated with applying direct
flame or use electric heating elements.

The way it works: By using a pump, you
move liquid wort out the bottom of the Mash
Tun through a heat exchanger (a copper coil)
located in your Hot Liquor Tank and
then gently return it to the top of the grain
bed. This heat exchange is very gentle and
will not have any caramelizing effects on the
wort.
Another advantage of SMART systems is
wort clarity. When you are doing recirculation
you are using the grain bed as a filter to remove
particulate from the recirculating wort.
This allows you to transfer already cleared wort
into the Boil Kettle.

Description: Bryan shipped a gallon of fresh lilikoi from his backyard. He crushed and lightly pasteurized the fruit. This batch is not as intensely aromatic and flavorful as the last two arrivals. Another good friend, ALF, says the acidity is so high that pasteurization is not necessary.
I typically do a 70/30% grist ratio with my American Wheat recipes but stepped this up a bit in the pale malt along with a slightly higher mash temp to cut just a bit off the tart.
This is the 3rd homebrew using Lilikoi juice and I also have a mead in progress as well. In my opinion, this is an outstanding fruit to work with for its aromatics, flavor, tartness, and hue contribution (a saturated orange juice color).

Ingredients

Amt

Name

Type

#

%/IBU

8.03 gal

SD Alvarado

Water

1

-

7 lbs

White Wheat Malt (2.4 SRM)

Grain

2

63.6 %

4 lbs

Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM)

Grain

3

36.4 %

1.00 oz

Hallertauer Mittelfrueh [4.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min

Hop

4

15.4 IBUs

1.00 Items

Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 mins)

Fining

5

-

1.0 pkg

California Ale (White Labs #WLP001) [35.49 ml]

Yeast

6

-

1.00 pt

Lilikoi Juice (Primary 0.0 mins)

Flavor

7

-

0.50 pt

Lilikoi Juice (Bottling 0.0 mins)

Flavor

8

-

Mash Steps

Name

Description

Step Temperature

Step Time

Mash In

Add 12.10 qt of water at 174.5 F

152.0 F

60 min

Mash Type: Single Infusion, Medium-Light Body, No Mash Out

Total Grain Weight:
11 lbs

Sparge Temperature:
168.0 F

Pre-boil Volume:
5.95 gal

Days in Primary: 13.00

Primary Temperature:
65.0 F

Days in Secondary:
10.00

Secondary Temperature:
67.0 F

Days in Tertiary: 7.00

Tertiary Temperature:
65.0 F

Carbonation Type:
Keg

Volumes of CO2: 2.5

Pressure/Weight:
12.27 PSI

Carbonation Used:
Keg with 12.27 PSI

Keg/Bottling Temperature:
40.0 F

Storage Temperature:
40.0 F

Notes: At kegging, it was determined by Michelle (my senses were ruined by a recent cold) to add more lilikoi juice to increase aromatics, flavor, and tartness. 1/2 pint of juice was added directly to the keg. No secondary fermentation, went straight to keg. White Labs WLP001 used directly from vial, no starter. By the look at the bottom of the primary after racking, the yeast bed looked very frothy white and healthy. Certainly cleaner than most yeast beds after primary though could be due to lower trub amounts in primary.
Lilikoi Juice likely added sugar content that contributes to the OG. It also changes the pH at each addition.